Steven O'Rourke — Building Champions: Trust, Tactics & the Mental Game

I sat down with my own club coach for the first time on Between the Rounds.Steven O'Rourke has coached fighters for over 30 years out of O'Rourke's Gym in Inchicore, Dublin. In this conversation he reveals how he reads a fighter's mental state before they know something's wrong, the coded combination system he uses mid-fight, why he builds trust before technique, and how he's kept the father-coach dynamic with his son Ryan healthy when so many others fall apart.Whether you're a boxer, a coach, or someone interested in performance under pressure.  this is the side of the sport you never see.In this episode: inside O'Rourke's Gym, building mental strength, coaching Ryan from six months old, when the father-coach line gets dangerous, what Steven saw in me as a fighter, who earns his coaching, "it's all in your head," task-based sparring, opponent study and game plans, code names for combinations, corner style between rounds, when a fighter stops listening, coaching women, and the future of the O'Rourke legacy.Host: Sarah Cunningham | Guest: Steven O'RourkeBetween the Rounds explores the strategy, preparation, and decisions that shape performance — in sport, business, and careers.